Beneath your Beautiful:

I have met physically beautiful people that looked as if they just stepped out of a Vogue magazine.
The kind of beauty that, when you look at them, takes your breath away.
We are all drawn to outward beauty, like a moth to a flame. But some moths get burned while trying to touch the beautiful flame!
People are seduced by the Hollywood "idea of beauty!"

When we meet a beautiful person, we expect that they will dazzle us even more with personality's that match or outshine their beauty.
Although we need to build children's self-esteem so they can grow up and be confident in a world that is often cruel and unkind, we are too often focused only on the outer beauty of the child!

The shell of a snail is simply the covering of it and protects what is inside. When we see a snail, we admire the intricate pattern, yet as soon as the shell is gone or the snail peeps its head out, we are taken aback by the plain-looking snail inside. No longer do we admire it, and some of us are repulsed and disinterested in the essence of the snail.

We tell our children that they are beautiful without encouraging them to do beautiful things and to be beautiful from the inside. Kindness, generosity and love, are often overlooked as we stare at "the shell" of the person. It doesn't have to be an either-or situation - a choice between inner and outer beauty. Those that are outwardly beautiful can be beautiful inside too.

Our world has been "taken over" by people who have very little to offer but what they consider their gift to society - which is the way they look. The Barbie and Ken look-alike are known as a "power couple," and advertising campaigns encourage the "perfect" look.

Beauty isn't something we earned; it is not something that requires hard work. Beauty is a gift bestowed upon some that choose to exploit it and see it as an "easy" way to make money. Is it any wonder that some beautiful people end up broken on the inside?

What happens to those people not considered beautiful, or their looks "not in line" with the industry norms? We miss out on opportunities to meet and befriend the most beautiful people that have graced the earth by our inability or unwillingness to look beneath the beautiful.